The Official Nordic Challenge - april 2020

[albajos]

The Norden Challenge
(Norden is the name of the area in all scandinavian languages) (The two other: Norðurlandaþjóðir/Pohjoismaat)


Bodil - the danish film award (they actually have two, but this is the oldest)

Goal: Watch as many movies from the Nordic countries and autonomous territories as you can (or want).

Eligible countries and territories

Denmark
Faroe Islands
Finland
Greenland
Iceland
Norway
Sweden
Åland Islands

Rules:
- A feature film (Anything over 40 minutes) counts as one entry.
- A total of 60 minutes of short films count as one entry.
- For Mini-Series or tv shows the 120 minutes rule applies - regardless of episode length. (The reason for the expansion is to not give the locals too much advantage since we can access everything the broadcasters have ever made for free - TV licence for the win!)
- Rewatches are welcome, but do explore something outside og Bergman, Kaurismäki, von Trier and Dreyer.
- You have to post year of release. If you don't I will not count them in the challenge. (The reason for this is to figure it what movie it is, particularly as many of you will use aka titles)
- Please post original title (and aka if you want).
- Please post country/countries.

Lists: (red links = official)
Did you know that The Nordic Council have their own film award? You can read about it here: Nordic Council Film Prize
Nordic Council Film Prize (winners)
Nordic Council Film Prize (nominees)

Multiple-country lists:
iCM Forum's Favorite Nordic movies 2016 (top 100)

UNESCO's Memory of the World: National Cinematic Heritage - Denmark (189-203), Finland (244-258), Norway (511-525), Sweden (686-700)
Historical Dictionary of Scandinavian Cinema
Nordic Movies on Official ICM lists
Kenji's A Scrumptious Scandinavian Smörgåsbord (personal list)
8 paduchi's How Scandinavian of Me: Maidanezi Mai Suedezi (personal list)

Denmark:
Dansk Spillefilm Top 100
Danish submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film

Faroe Islands:
Kolar's Faroe Islands (personal list)

Finland:
Yle News' Best Finnish Films of All Time
Helsingin Sanomat's 100 Greatest Finnish Films (2007)
Sakari Toiviainen's 100 Finnish Films

Iceland:
Icelandic Movies
Kolar's Iceland: Land of Fire and Ice (personal list)

Norway:
Best norwegian movie of all time (1991)
Best norwegian movie of all time (2001)
Best norwegian movie of all time (2011)
100 Norwegian Films You Must See
Norwegian films in official lists
Norwegian Academy Award nominations
Lars Ole Kristiansen's The Best of New Norwegian Cinema (personal list)

Full film history for the nerds

Norwegian cinematic releases 1910s
Norwegian cinematic releases 1920s
Norwegian cinematic releases 1930s
Norwegian cinematic releases 1940s
Norwegian cinematic releases 1950s
Norwegian cinematic releases 1960s
Norwegian cinematic releases 1970s
Norwegian cinematic releases 1980s
Norwegian cinematic releases 1990s
Norwegian cinematic releases 2000s
Norwegian cinematic releases 2010s

Every single cinematic release in Norway. It's about 1100 in total. Some are lost to time.
The 2010s list is not completely updated as titles are missing from imdb.

If you find co-productions on imdb that aren't on these lists (like Zwei Leiben (2012)) then they are not eligble. The Snowman and The two american Millenium movies are not eligible either.

Sweden:
FLM's Best Swedish Films of All Time
Swedish submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
Filmen i Sverige (2003) - All Swedish Films
Moira Sullivan's ....And Now a Word about Swedish Cinema] (personal list)
[url=https://mubi.com/lists/swedish-cinema-the-silent-era]Kolar's Swedish Cinema: The Silent Era] (personal list)

Award lists:
Denmark: [url=https://www.icheckmovies.com/lists/bodi ... nish+film/Bodil Award Winners For Best Danish Film
Finland: Jussi Awards
Iceland: Edda Award Best Film (Biomynd arsins)
Norway: Amanda Award - Best Film
Sweden: Guldbagge Award

Director filmographies:
Aki Kaurismaki Filmography (Finnish)
Anja Breien - most productive norwegian female director
Carl Theodor Dreyer Filmography (Danish)
Ingmar Bergman Filmography (Swedish)
Jan Troell Filmography (Swedish)
Lars von Trier Filmography (Danish)
Nils R. Müller - most productive norwegian male director
Roy Andersson Filmography (Swedish)
Victor Sjostrom Filmography (Swedish)
Norwegian directors ♂ (updated to the mid 80s, I'll try to complete it during the challenge)
Norwegian directors (updated to the mid 80s, I'll try to complete it during the challenge)

Available:
https://www.netflix.com/browse/genre/78141?so=yr

I have only checked and updated the official lists, so give me a heads up if something else is oooold.

Movies that count for all challenges:

Triple

TBD

Nordic DTC

TBD

Nordic 1950s

Too many to list

Bonus challenge:
Iceland was clearly least viewed country last time so for the bonus challenge, just watch movies from from Iceland

standings

Position

Participant

Isl

Record:
We have held this once before (with only Nordic) the highest score is so far 160 points. There has also been a couple of times they have shared the glory with Benelux, but those score are kept seperate, but I will add those movies from those challenges to the all time views list.

Participants:

Rank	Participant	Count	Denmark	Faroe Islands	Finland	Iceland	Norway	Sweden
1	jajusu	100	6		80	2	6	6
2	Traveller	92	10		13	1	35	35
3	blueboybob	73	16		8	1	23	25
4	Mario Gaborović	52	10	1	7	3	7	23
5	sol	51	14		1	6	8	22
6	jdidaco	50	12	1	8	3	5	19
7	AssonFire	36	9		2	2	8	14
8	ororama	24	7		5	3	2	6
9	Lonewolf2003	21					1	20
10	erde	20	1		17		1	1
10	flavo5000	20	3	1		2	5	9
10	morrison-dylan-fan	20	2		3	2	6	7
13	allisoncm	16	5		3		1	7
14	jeroeno	11	6				3	2
15	OldAle1	10	1		4	1	1	3
15	peeptoad	10	1	1	1	1	1	5
17	maxwelldeux	8	3		3		1	1
18	cinephage	7	3		1		1	2
18	hurluberlu	7					1	6
18	Obgeoff	7			1			6
21	AB537	6	1				1	3
21	blocho	6			1		1	4
21	kingink	6						6
24	albajos	2					2
24	bentoga	2			1			1
24	Cinepolis	2				1	1
24	mathiasa	2			1			1
28	Melvelet	1						1
28	vortexsurfer	1				1
28	zzzorf	1						1
30	22,13	664

[Traveller]

Thanks for hosting, albajos. I'm in and looking forward to it.

[Lonewolf2003]

I have a box set here from some director named Ingmar Bergman , have you guys ever heard of him? Anyway I will be working on that box set mostly for this challenge.

[3eyes]

Dunno how much I'll participate (if at all) but I appreciate your nerdishness vis-a-vis Norwegian movies. Even found a couple obscure ones I've seen - Mendel (1997, fave, have it on VHS ) and Psychedelica Blues (1969, saw it in theater, awful)

[albajos]

Well, it's NFI's list so everything should be there (that played in Oslo)

[flavo5000]

I'll try to watch some for this challenge. Some of my lowest ranked lists are in these countries, so I'll try to see if I can crack the 500 rank for them.

[Traveller]

01. Utvandrarna (1971, Sweden) - 8/10
02. Nybyggarna (1972, Sweden) - 8/10

[kingink]

I will start my little Bergman-thon with the movie he hated the most
1/ Sånt händer inte här aka This Can't Happen Here (1950) 4/10

It's quite obvious why he didn't like this film and asked never to be played again. I don't see him in this. His directing skills just weren't there. Probably he didn't believe in this stupid little script he had to work with. Who knows? I am not gonna research this film any more to try and find out.

[jajusu]

1. Marja (1994, Finland)
2. Painija (1985, Finland)
3. Pieniä valheita (1994, Finland)
4. Punaiset purjeet (1989, Finland)

[morrison-dylan-fan]

Thanks for hosting albajos:



FTV:1:My Sister and I (1950) (Sweden.)7.

Playing not one, but two members of the family, Sickan Carlsson gives hilarious sparkling turns as “sisters” Katarina and Birgitta Hassel,as she fools everyone thanks to Carlsson giving Birgitta a feisty, sarcastic streak, which runs in the other direction of the refine, regal manner Carlsson has Hassel hold Katarina up in,in order to present the image her family desires.

Getting wrapped round her little finger, Gunnar Bjornstrand gives a wonderful dead-pan performance as Stenwall, whose push/pull between the “sisters” allows Bjornstrand to leave Stenwall flustered.

Wearing some of The Prince and the Pauper robes in adapting the Ralph Benatzky operetta/ Georges Berr and Louis Verneuil’s play,Solve Cederstrand wonderfully plays on Hassel’s card trick double identity,slipping and sliding towards her having to rush to change between Birgitta and Katarina before Stenwall catches on. Contrasting the two persona’s of Hassel, director Schamyl Bauman lights a stark contrast between each “sister”, giving Birgitta a normal, down to earth appearance, crystallised by the shimmering regal lighting for the other sister.

[vortexsurfer]

1. Niceland (Population. 1.000.002) (Friðrik Þór Friðriksson, 2004) Iceland

[Cinepolis]

Wow, there are no Nordic movies on Netflix Germany. Luckily, it's not my primary resource for movies.

[Traveller]

Wow, there are no Nordic movies on Netflix Germany. Luckily, it's not my primary resource for movies.

How and where did you check? Seems wrong.

03. Mannen som elsket Yngve (2008, Norway) - 6/10
04. Eggs (1995, Norway) - 5/10
05. Kon-Tiki (1950, Norway) - 7/10

[cinephage]

01. Play, by Ruben Ostlund (2011) 8,5/10 - Sweden

A very rich movie on harassment among children...

[Mario Gaborović]

01. Mustaa valkoisella (1968) - Finland
02. Gló(ð) (2012) + Summarnátt (2012) + Frávik (2017) + Sorry 4 Yourself (2017) + Wünder Pitsa (2017) + Collision Course (2018) + Lily (2018) + The Babysitter (2018) - Faroe Islands

[Cinepolis]

Wow, there are no Nordic movies on Netflix Germany. Luckily, it's not my primary resource for movies.

How and where did you check? Seems wrong.

03. Mannen som elsket Yngve (2008, Norway) - 6/10
04. Eggs (1995, Norway) - 5/10
05. Kon-Tiki (1950, Norway) - 7/10

You're right, there are a few. I guess the link above doesn't work for all countries. Still, not even 40 movies if you add all the eligible movies together.

[ororama]

1. Kjærlighetens kjøtere/ Zero Kelvin (1995) * 114 min. (Norway, Sweden)

*First time viewing

[jajusu]

5. Suuri illusioni (1985, Finland)
6. Takatöölö story (1993, Finland)
7. Viimeinen keikka (1984, Finland)
8. Rakastunut rampa (1975, Finland)

Spoiler

1. Marja (1994, Finland)
2. Painija (1985, Finland)
3. Pieniä valheita (1994, Finland)
4. Punaiset purjeet (1989, Finland)

[erde]

Count me in! Maybe I'll finally be able to get that Bronze on Yle News Best Finnish Films list that I've been meaning to get for so long, and assigned as one of my goals for this year (again). It's a little embarassing not to have seen many of the cinematic classics of my own country, but for some reason I have been very unenthusiastic about watching them all my life. Aki Kaurismäki is a notable exception, and I admire most of his movies, but I consider him a very atypical Finnish director.

Happy about watching new films from other Nordic countries, too!

[kingink]

5. Suuri illusioni (1985, Finland)
6. Takatöölö story (1993, Finland)
7. Viimeinen keikka (1984, Finland)
8. Rakastunut rampa (1975, Finland)

Spoiler

1. Marja (1994, Finland)
2. Painija (1985, Finland)
3. Pieniä valheita (1994, Finland)
4. Punaiset purjeet (1989, Finland)

Are you from Finland jajusu? Because I see a patern here
If you are indeed from Finland, please recommend some classic films we can watch.

[albajos]

[You're right, there are a few. I guess the link above doesn't work for all countries. Still, not even 40 movies if you add all the eligible movies together.

It's a two year old link. I don't have Netflix so I can't check if it's accurate anymore

[peeptoad]

1. Arctic (Iceland, 2018) 6

[sol]

1. The 101-Year-Old Man Who Skipped Out on the Bill and Disappeared (2016) Sweden



This sequel is engaging enough with lead actors Robert Gustafsson and Iwar Wiklander in equally fine form and some memorable cheeky monkey antics. There are some great throwaway lines too, such as YouTube being described as "like TV, only it's all crap" by one of the old men. Alas, the old men and monkey are very often sidelined for an overload of scenes of with less interesting supporting characters. Fun (under-developed) Nixon subplot though.

[kingink]

2/ Fangelse aka Prison (1949) 7/10
The first film with his own script and it shows. A nice film with some flaws. Not an essential viewing if you are not obsessed with Bergman.

Spoiler

1/ Sånt händer inte här aka This Can't Happen Here (1950) 4/10
2/ Fangelse aka Prison (1949) 7/10

[morrison-dylan-fan]

FTV:2:Skadeskutt (1951) (Norway.)6.




Opening the door and panning towards the character Dr.Lunde speaking directly to the viewer about the events about to be shown, director Edith Carlmar & cinematographer Per Jonson sea-saw between treating the subject of mental health problems with a professionalism in following Dr. Lunde and the nurses talking to each “Forgotten” patient daily in a warm, respectful manner, strangely contrasted by Carlmar and Jonson with abrasive turns into Horror/Thriller territory,covering Dr.Lunde in low-lighting as if he is from a “Mad Scientist” flick,and Einar losing all hope in a final chase.

Sensitively having Dr.Lunde say to Else/the viewer that there is nothing wrong/should not be a stigma of having to commit a person to a mental health ward, the screenplay by Otto Carlmar goes through similar mood swings as Carlmar’s directing. Compassionately presenting Einar as a kind, but troubled manner with deep concerns about mental health issues in his family history, Carlmar goes from one moment having Einar go into in-depth discussions with Dr. Lunde, to Einar being chased to a table for shock therapy.

[Traveller]

06. Gategutter (1949, Norway) - 6/10
07. Markens grøde (1921, Norway) - 7/10
08. Det brenner i natt! (1955, Norway) - 8/10

[blueboybob]

1. [Sweden] A Swedish Love Story (1970)
2. [Sweden] The Passion of Anna (1969)
3. [Sweden] The Adventures of Picasso (1978)
4. [Denmark] Europa (1991)

[jajusu]

9. Matkapuhelimen tarina (2017, Finland)
10. Hella W (2011, Finland)
11. Saattokeikka (2017, Finland)
12. Tokasikajuttu (2017, Finland)

Spoiler

1. Marja (1994, Finland)
2. Painija (1985, Finland)
3. Pieniä valheita (1994, Finland)
4. Punaiset purjeet (1989, Finland)
5. Suuri illusioni (1985, Finland)
6. Takatöölö story (1993, Finland)
7. Viimeinen keikka (1984, Finland)
8. Rakastunut rampa (1975, Finland)

[jajusu]

5. Suuri illusioni (1985, Finland)
6. Takatöölö story (1993, Finland)
7. Viimeinen keikka (1984, Finland)
8. Rakastunut rampa (1975, Finland)

Spoiler

1. Marja (1994, Finland)
2. Painija (1985, Finland)
3. Pieniä valheita (1994, Finland)
4. Punaiset purjeet (1989, Finland)

Are you from Finland jajusu? Because I see a patern here
If you are indeed from Finland, please recommend some classic films we can watch.

Yes, I'm from Finland. I think that Komisario Palmu films (except the last one) are best classic ones. Two other favorites are https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0133016/ and https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0133245/.

[jdidaco]

Thanks for hosting.

(Screenshots from 'Olet mennyt minun vereeni' & 'Gift'),



1. Olet mennyt minun vereeni (You've Gone Into My Blood, Teuvo Tulio, 1956) 9/10 (Finland)
2. Qivitoq (Erik Balling, 1956) 8/10 (Denmark)
3. Raggare! (Blackjackets, Olle Hellbom, 1959) 8/10 (Sweden)
4. Bröllopsbesvär (Swedish Wedding Night, Åke Falck, 1964) 7/10 (Sweden)
5. Gift (Venom, Knud Leif Thomsen, 1966) 9/10 (Denmark)
6. One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich (Casper Wrede, 1970) 8.5/10 (Norway)

[sol]

The Northerners

1. The 101-Year-Old Man Who Skipped Out on the Bill and Disappeared (2016) Sweden

2. Lego House: Home of the Brick (2018) Denmark



Former Lego CEO (and grandson of Lego's founder) Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen is interviewed in this documentary about his vision of building a giant Lego playhouse that also looks like it is made of Lego. He is a pretty engaging individual, but he also comes off as more of an eccentric billionaire than anything else here. There is limited focus on his desire to inspire children's creativity and much more attention on the building's unusual features.

[peeptoad]

2. Kon-Tiki (Norway, 1950) 8
3. Draug (Sweden, 2018) 4

Norden

1. Arctic (Iceland, 2018) 6

[sol]

The Northerners

1. The 101-Year-Old Man Who Skipped Out on the Bill and Disappeared (2016) Sweden
2. Lego House: Home of the Brick (2018) Denmark

3. In Order of Disappearance (2014) Norway



While there is something darkly comical about rival drug cartels blaming each other for an old man's vengeance murders, I never found this all that funny. There are some quirky side events (bored gang members having snowball fights) but the overall tone is very grim given the grieving protagonist and the mounting number of off-screen deaths. Stellan Skarsgård is great either way, though I thought that Bruno Ganz stole every scene was in.

[flavo5000]

1. Skepp till India land a.k.a. A Ship To India (Sweden, 1947)
2. Sommarlek a.k.a. Summer Interlude (Sweden, 1951)
3. Bølgen a.k.a. The Wave (Norway/Sweden, 2015)

Spoiler

1. Skepp till India land a.k.a. A Ship To India (Sweden, 1947)
2. Sommarlek a.k.a. Summer Interlude (Sweden, 1951)
3. Bølgen a.k.a. The Wave (Norway/Sweden, 2015)

[Cinepolis]

1. Out of Thin Air (Iceland, 2017) - 6/10

[maxwelldeux]

1. Rare Exports (2010, Finland)
This was fun - evil santas are fun and funny. Some nice landscape shots and solid comedic elements. Might even think about revisiting this around the holidays.

2. Born American (1986, Finland)
Today I learned there were only 92 movies ever produced in Finland prior to 2012... a fact I assume to be true because that's the only plausible explanation as to why this film is on Yle News's Best Finnish Films list.

[sol]

The Northerners

1. The 101-Year-Old Man Who Skipped Out on the Bill and Disappeared (2016) Sweden
2. Lego House: Home of the Brick (2018) Denmark
3. In Order of Disappearance (2014) Norway

4. Of Horses and Men (2013) Iceland



Several tales of men and horses are blended together in this strange comedy from Iceland. The first two tales are the best - though the endings in both cases are jarringly grim. There is a further memorable segment involving a rider stuck in the freezing cold, but the tales mostly get less engaging as the film progresses, the jumps between zany comedy and dark drama seem even less fitting, and amidst it all, it is hard to say what exactly this is about.

[kingink]

3/ For att inte tala om alla dessa kvinnor aka Now About These Women (1964) 3/10
Well this is probably the worst Bergman film that exists. At least I hope so... The downfall of having seen almost all his classic films is that now I am stuck with these.

Spoiler

1/ Sånt händer inte här aka This Can't Happen Here (1950) 4/10
2/ Fangelse aka Prison (1949) 7/10
3/ For att inte tala om alla dessa kvinnor aka Now About These Women (1964) 3/10

[Traveller]

09. Ångrarna (2010, Sweden) - 4/10
10. Fante-Anne (1920, Norway) - 6/10
11. Toivon tuolla puolen (2017, Finland) - 7/10

[erde]

1. Katsastus (1988, Finland)